Entry precision rifle

[broylz]

I guess my experience differs from yours.
I had a SPS-Varmint as my first gun and replaced the stock with a 5R take-off. next was a 5R milspec, then a 20" AAC-SD and a Savage 10FCP-SR. all of them shot 5 round groups between 3/4" to 1" groups which is good enough for me. im not sure I could hold better than that with the cheap Millett TRS-1 and SS10x scopes I was using on them.
My current gun is an older R700 ADL in 30-06 which has the best trigger ive shot, after I adjusted it myself. it shoots about 1.5" as is in the cheap wooden stock and Remington core-lokt hunting ammo.

that said, I will stick with the Remington 700 for its smooth action and good trigger. the parts availability is great and gunsmiths can make it do whatever I want it to do. that said, out of the box, the rifle is plenty or a vast majority of the shooters who want a precision rifle.

others opinions may differ and that's the beauty of the market producing options but to say that one of the most popular actions is the worst because people work on them just doesn't seem right. otherwise the Remington 700, 1911, Glock and AR15 would all suck as they are so popular among gunsmiths... the Mossberg ATR100 must be amazing because I don't know of anyone rebarreling and truing them.

[TurretGunner]

I guess my experience differs from yours.
I had a SPS-Varmint as my first gun and replaced the stock with a 5R take-off. next was a 5R milspec, then a 20" AAC-SD and a Savage 10FCP-SR. all of them shot 5 round groups between 3/4" to 1" groups which is good enough for me. im not sure I could hold better than that with the cheap Millett TRS-1 and SS10x scopes I was using on them.
My current gun is an older R700 ADL in 30-06 which has the best trigger ive shot, after I adjusted it myself. it shoots about 1.5" as is in the cheap wooden stock and Remington core-lokt hunting ammo.

that said, I will stick with the Remington 700 for its smooth action and good trigger. the parts availability is great and gunsmiths can make it do whatever I want it to do. that said, out of the box, the rifle is plenty or a vast majority of the shooters who want a precision rifle.

others opinions may differ and that's the beauty of the market producing options but to say that one of the most popular actions is the worst because people work on them just doesn't seem right. otherwise the Remington 700, 1911, Glock and AR15 would all suck as they are so popular among gunsmiths... the Mossberg ATR100 must be amazing because I don't know of anyone rebarreling and truing them.

So you have nothing to compare it to in summation?

All of the other makers mentioned come with smoother actions, better QC, and better Stock triggers.

The Savage is incompatable for any serious work as they have reliability issues. The remington needs a ton of work done to it before it's reliable enough for serious use.

Shooting a few boxes of ammo a year or using to kill a few deer, any gun will do.

Your comparison to other guns besides the 1911 make little sense. AR-15's are completley modular, and that is why they are so popular. Glocks need Nothing other than good sights out of the box. 1911's are obsolete pistols that are owned/shot for their nastagla. Modern designs has rendered it obsolete.

Want to guess why a good 1911 cost so much money? The same reason a good 700, costs alot of money.

This thread is about precision rifles.

[BrigandTwoFour]

I had a SPS-Varmint as my first gun and replaced the stock with a 5R take-off. next was a 5R milspec, then a 20" AAC-SD and a Savage 10FCP-SR. all of them shot 5 round groups between 3/4" to 1" groups which is good enough for me. im not sure I could hold better than that with the cheap Millett TRS-1 and SS10x scopes I was using on them.
My current gun is an older R700 ADL in 30-06 which has the best trigger ive shot, after I adjusted it myself. it shoots about 1.5" as is in the cheap wooden stock and Remington core-lokt hunting ammo.

that said, I will stick with the Remington 700 for its smooth action and good trigger. the parts availability is great and gunsmiths can make it do whatever I want it to do. that said, out of the box, the rifle is plenty or a vast majority of the shooters who want a precision rifle.

So the crux of your argument is this: you don't have experience with anything else, but it works good enough for you, so why not preach it?

Nearly any factory rifle mentioned in this thread will hold those same accuracy numbers. But the Tikka, Howa, Weatherby, and Savage all have superior triggers from the factory, and will probably have smoother feeling actions.

The bottom line is this: for an entry level rig, it DOES NOT MATTER what you purchase. Get what is in your price range, put GOOD glass on it, and go shoot. The rest will fall in line. Burn out the first barrel learning to shoot, then go modify to your heart's content. Once you get to this point, the few hundred dollar difference in money needed for various mods is negligible compared to the cost of the ammo you've shot, the barrel you're installing, and the gunsmith fees to do it.

[Gutshot John]

With the SPS, I don't know why anyone would consider a Savage. Equivalent price, much better aftermarket support, and you can build it out as you learn and plenty of accuracy out to 1000 yards.

I've shot Savages, not only is quality suspect but that stupid trigger is an abomination.

[decodeddiesel]

With the SPS, I don't know why anyone would consider a Savage. Equivalent price, much better aftermarket support, and you can build it out as you learn and plenty of accuracy out to 1000 yards.

I've shot Savages, not only is quality suspect but that stupid trigger is an abomination.

I agree.

In the price bracket, the SPS is tough to beat. Still though, even though the mechanical accuracy of my sample of one was outstanding, I'll admit there are some less than stelar things about the SPS Tactical. The stock sucks, we all know. The action was not at all smooth, and the rifle really didn't like feeding from the BDL magazine very much.

I really like to hear what models of Tikka, FN, Howa compete with the SPS Tactical in the ~$600 category. I have only ever fired a Tikka T3 Tactical and it was a really impressive rifle, but it is nearly 2x the cost of a R700. Word around the campfire is the T3 Varmint in 308 is no longer imported, and hasn't been for some time. I would love to find one, but I would expect to pay $900-$1000.

[TurretGunner]

I agree.

In the price bracket, the SPS is tough to beat. Still though, even though the mechanical accuracy of my sample of one was outstanding, I'll admit there are some less than stelar things about the SPS Tactical. The stock sucks, we all know. The action was not at all smooth, and the rifle really didn't like feeding from the BDL magazine very much.

I really like to hear what models of Tikka, FN, Howa compete with the SPS Tactical in the ~$600 category. I have only ever fired a Tikka T3 Tactical and it was a really impressive rifle, but it is nearly 2x the cost of a R700. Word around the campfire is the T3 Varmint in 308 is no longer imported, and hasn't been for some time. I would love to find one, but I would expect to pay $900-$1000.

I just bought this today

http://www.gunsamerica.com/986533494...ter_260Rem.htm

Sell the Brake, Scope and Stock.....and I just paid $500 for a heavy barreled Tikka in .260 with a threaded barrel.

I'm Stoked!

[wingspar]

I have been doing some research for the same thing the OP started this thread for. I’m not real fond of the 700, so the Savage 10 in .308 is top of the list at this point in time. FN is another one. I hear a lot of good things about the Tikka 3, but if one looks at the Tikka page under the Tikka 3 you see the following models listed. Which model do most who just want to shoot paper at 100 yards and beyond look at? There are 15 different models listed below, and I don’t have a clue as to which to look at.

HUNTER
HUNTER STAINLESS
HUNTER FLUTED BARREL
HUNTER STAINLESS FLUTED BARREL
FOREST
LITE STAINLESS
CAMO STAINLESS
SPORTER
LITE
LAMINATED STAINLESS
BATTUE
BATTUE LITE
VARMINT
VARMINT STAINLESS
SUPER VARMINT
TAC

(Sorry about the all caps, but I just copy pasted from their web site).

[DTakas]

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[TurretGunner]

I have been doing some research for the same thing the OP started this thread for. I’m not real fond of the 700, so the Savage 10 in .308 is top of the list at this point in time. FN is another one. I hear a lot of good things about the Tikka 3, but if one looks at the Tikka page under the Tikka 3 you see the following models listed. Which model do most who just want to shoot paper at 100 yards and beyond look at? There are 15 different models listed below, and I don’t have a clue as to which to look at.

HUNTER
HUNTER STAINLESS
HUNTER FLUTED BARREL
HUNTER STAINLESS FLUTED BARREL
FOREST
LITE STAINLESS
CAMO STAINLESS
SPORTER
LITE
LAMINATED STAINLESS
BATTUE
BATTUE LITE
VARMINT
VARMINT STAINLESS
SUPER VARMINT
TAC

(Sorry about the all caps, but I just copy pasted from their web site).

This is the sad part. Tikka make rifles at price points that would absoluley dominate the market. They shoot as good as most custom rifles do at a fraction of the cost. However, they only import certain models, and the ones that would be in huge demand by precision and long range shooters, they don't. Berretta is absolultey ****ing retarded when it comes to managing Tikka/Sako/Benneli/Stoeger.

The Varmit, Heavy Varmit and Scout are all AMAZING rifles. IN fact on tikka's website they even list them as being sold with threaded barrels in .243, .260. .308... all the good calibers.

Your best bet is to find a sporter in .260, .308, 6.5x55 or maybe .243 if they make it. The rifle is a hell of a value even at $1500. Fantastic action, Same barrel that is on the Sako TRG, Great triger, and a Stock that has the same ergonomics and feel as the TRG... only its made of wood.

Or you could try and find a used Varmit/Scout and go from there

Or you could get a .308 Tac which is very good for the money but not offered in .243/.260/6.5CM.

Or you could buy a T3 Lite ( synth), T3 Hunter (wood stock) in .243 or .308; Even the factory synthetic stock is free floated and is very servicable. It has a thin barrel so you cant shoot high volumes without getting stringing from the head. Have it rebarreled with a Krieger/Bartlien/Brux and then dropped into a chassis and you have a hell of a gun.

Either way your ahead of the game. FN SPR's are also another good route to go, but more expensive.

700's and savages are just not worth the money to me and both are not reliable and built well enough (stock) to trust for any serious shooting.

[TurretGunner]

I’m not particularly familiar with all the specific models but just looking at the names I would assume TAC stands for Tactical so I’d check that one out. Also usually Varmint models are heavy barreled and accuracy oriented so I would check out the Varmint and Super Varmint also.

Probably ignore anything with lite or stainless in the name (you probably don't want anything with a shiny or thin barrel).

Varmit and Scouts are almost impossible to find. Even the new varmits are only imported in .204 .223 and 22-250.